Back to School
The first day back to school is like no other day of the year. When I was a kid, it was so hard to let go of summer. Riding my bike, going swimming, playing with the kids on the block until it was past dark. Summer was the best – it still is!
But somehow all the preparation for the first day of school made the transition a little easier. We’d go shopping for school supplies, checking o all the items on the list from the teacher: pencils, crayons, notebook paper, ruler . . . I loved all those cool folders you could choose from. Pretty much your pencils and pens all looked like everyone else’s, but your folders showed your true fan passions: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Transformers, Power Rangers, Spiderman or that old standby, Superman. If we were lucky, the new book bag and lunch box would match the superhero folders! The girls all got folders and book bags with latest Disney movie princesses, and even though those characters don’t do much for me, my daughters sure love them.
My little girls LOVE shopping, so even though they’re not in school yet, they’re drawn to the dazzle of the school supply aisle. Because we have sat through the DVD about 700 times, I am figuring this fall’s Disney fashion trend will be “Frozen.” There are “Frozen” tee-shirts and tchotchkes everywhere I go.
Of course, once all the school supplies and clothes are bought, the real fun begins. I remember unwrapping the pencils, pencil sharpener, pens, glue, etc. and arranging everything in my pencil case. Then packing the pencil case and paper and folders into the new book bag – all ready to go even though school wasn’t going to start for a week. The night before school started, Mom made us set out our clothes so we’d be able to get up and dressed fast – she knew we’d be hard to get out of bed after sleeping in all summer long.
A few weeks into the school year, Picture Day arrives. When I was a kid, all the boys had to get fresh haircuts, and all the girls wore their favorite outfits to school that day. My wife is a teacher, and she assures me things haven’t changed! School pictures are like a rite of passage. In their Kindergarten pictures, the kids are almost so cute you can’t stand it. Then there are the gawky middle grade pictures where the boys always seem a little disheveled and the girls a little self-conscious. Then there are the too- cool-for-school 7th and 8th grade pictures. Everyone has a school picture they have either already destroyed or wish they could destroy – mine was 6th grade. You know which one you hate. What all school pictures have in common it that they’re straight- on shots, head-and-shoulders . . . You almost have to strain to remember that there was a lively personality hidden behind that sti smile.
It would be so great to have a photo booth at Picture Day! The photo strips could have the name of the school or the school logo, and the year. Kids could strike di erent poses – big grins, sweet smiles, beaming faces, little smirks. Decades later, those pictures would still be full of charm and fun – and really great childhood memories. I’ll have to see what I can do about that…